_____________

I think it's important to consider that a lot of artists out there, regardless of their fame or levels of success, do watch Eurovision. They enjoy it and many of them probably grew up and dreamt of appearing on such a stage someday. Look at Australian acts like Dami, Jess Mauboy, Kate... All of them said that they grew up aspiring to perform on that stage. Difference being, Australian attitudes towards ESC are different to those in the UK. In Australia it's not seen as a career killer, especially when our biggest pop star can't get a hit outside Aus. To us, it is seen as an opportunity to engage with international music fans and if you don't win, you represented your country and showed good sportsmanship. I think that's what Eurovision was intended to be, and Aussies truly enbody that. The Brits pessimism towards Eurovision has created a double edged sword, where no one wants to be seen as "seriously into it", and also believe it would damage their career. Having said that, what evidence exists to imply that doing Eurovision is a career ruining move? The vast majority of UK acts of recent years are stars that have faded, who enjoyed some short term resurgence, or new talent that had nothing to lose and everything to gain. With songs that, in any other circumstance, would not have made it past radio producers and into mainstream channels anyway. So to call Eurovision career suicide is simply unfounded as, no shade, you need a career to ruin a career. There are a number of variables here that could work to Mabel's (or similar) advantage: 1. The childhood dream. She's half Swedish and grew up there, where Eurovision is respected and a big cultural deal. 2. Mabel is arguably in an untouchable phase, where whatever she releases is lapped up by radio. You're only as good as your last hit, and thankfully Don't Call Me Up is still top 40 on iTunes and enjoying its 40-somethingth week on chart. 3. She is signed to a major label, that can put clauses in contracts. As she has some industry clout, she can offer to do the unthinkable in exchange for BBC contracts. These come in the form of prime time performance slots/radio playlisting and other promotional tactics to ensure that Mabel as an artist will be continually pushed, regardless of the result, until people forget. 4. If the UK wins, she will be known as the woman that could. 23 years after the UK's last victory, she was the one to break their longest winning drought and will always have that. 5. If all else fails and the UK flops, just blame Brexit. People will then laud Mabel as a saviour who just couldn't connect with the hearts of evil continental folk who just want to see them fail. 6. Bitch needs a European hit that isn't DCMU. So yeah Mabel for ESC yeww

Nice justification and a reasoned response. I totally agree, 250lbs at the absolute MOST. What do you think of the rest of the tweet lol

This debate veered way off course from the initial news article, which was about a guy being visited by the police for tweeting what was deemed offensive. My thoughts are that his tweets can be potentially offensive to all trans people, their families and allies. Just because one person made a complaint does not negate their damaging potential. And now with national media attention, their potential to cause greater offence is amplified. I don't think it is right to accuse police of wasting time to address these issues, because as you acknowledged, trans people and all members of the LGBTQ+ are vulnerable members of the community, who have fought for decades to enjoy basic human rights and protections. To me, the status quo, and the acceptable opinion, should reinforce the steps society has taken to become more accepting and supportive of minority groups. It should reflect the laws and protections in place to facilitate the safety and acceptance for LGBTQ+ people within their communities. Therefore the tweets, by indirectly challenging and contradicting these laws, despite allegedly not breaking them, have the potential to undo the social and legal steps taken to protect these vulnerable members of society. They indirectly speak to conservative people, who would ordinarily participate in respectful discourse, to encourage the use of hateful language and antagonising behaviour. They facilitate the perpetuation of trans stereotypes, the normalisation of trans bullying and offer no real benefit to social integration and harmony. Whether or not he can be charged with the offence is moot, but the opportunity for law enforcement and other authoritative figures to educate on the matter still exists. This provides the opportunity for lawmakers to look at what constitutes hate speech, and whether the publication of such views (if not hate speech) is beneficial to us as people. Alas, opinions that transcend the status quo have caused some of the finest societal progressions we have seen. The suffragette movement, legalisation of same-sex marriage and the option to undergo gender reassignment surgery can be attributed to a few small voices that got louder and louder. So I agree that censoring views and revoking freedom of speech would be detrimental, as we can't revel in some divergent opinions and refuse to accept others. However, these views and the manner in which they are communicated should be assessed on a case by case basis, to determine their potential for harm and benefit to social reform. Personally, I believe these tweets and his opinions are not conducive to a healthy functioning society, and education is key.

Jesus f***ing christ are you even a real person or a robot? I'm not even going to call you out on the specific parts of your post that irk me because it all does... But since I would like you to do better... No one cares what the other 4 members of Fifth Harmony have said or done because this is about what CAMILA has done. We are holding HER accountable for her actions because she needs to be held accountable. However she was exposed, whoever exposed, she did that and is rightly being held accountable. Do not f***ing use Stan culture so excuse an individual's actions. What she did and said was racist. And I don't think anyone is "jealous" of that. Go educate yourself instead of doing exactly what she is doing and pleading ignorance.

http://www.allaccess.com/audio/player/q/ai.../touch/formats/ You're welcome gorls <3 Make an account and it's there to stream!

Samantha Jade was more popular than Jessica Mauboy for a small time, and if it wasn't for (ongoing afaik) legal trouble between her current and former record labels, I think she'd be have been an international success with Firestarter. It's not over for her though, everyone knows who she is and she remains in the public eye very often.

Masterpiece kLQ-nCXu1QU

"f*** off, I said nice things about you" *rolls eyes* YAS KIM She's finally getting to the point where she isn't even willing to play along :lol:

They were filming at the theme park I work at in December, but I didn't see them ANYWHERE. Pissed me off tbh haha

She is so Jesy from Little Mix's mum

He isn't gay, I know some chick who did it with him BEFORE he was famous.

I completely agree with you. In fact, during the GFC, we were the envy of the world. And even still today, we are in a pretty fantastic position. I'd rather slowly return to a surplus, than have my way of life threatened so drastically. The thing is, this is mainly affecting people who are most vulnerable to the changes. For example, a well off person might not think $7 to visit a GP is unreasonable, especially given the fact they have private health insurance. But for people like me, who are unemployed students and can't receive Centrelink benefits, because my parents should still support me until I'm 24, in the eyes of the government (even though I'm a grown man, and don't get shit from them), $7 into my savings is pretty bad. Then it's a matter of your health vs. your money. And I won't even get into the HECS/HELP fee changes. This to me, whilst probably not intentionally, reeks of keeping the well-off rich and the poor disadvantaged. I'm not being funny, but $400 for someone who earns $200k a year is just measly. Why aren't the rich taxed more? They may not be able to afford the new luxury car this year, but at least they can afford to live.

I think it's bullshit to be honest. How can LNP serve us up so much shit after less than one year in parliament? Yes, our debt is huge, but that's just the way it is, and no matter what Labor did, the debt would have been big. I was seething when Abbott won the election, because as impractical and fantastical Labor may be, Abbott was always going to ruin this country - Australia is going to be the USA all over again as long as he stays in power. I hope Australians realise what they've done before it gets worse, I won't be voting for LNP on the next election.

It's shit. Shamefully embarrassing...

But flopping less so than On & On. http://thoughtcatalog.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/16.gif Love her really